Smart car not to smart

As someone concern about gas prices, I have being thinking about getting an economical car for my daugther. After seeing the new Smart car and it's mile per gallon 33/40, I thought I got the perfect car for my daughter. It is a very cute car and made by Mercedes Benz were good points for this car. But after going to my local dealer and seeing the price, it became obvious that this car is price like a Mercedes, but not much better than a Kia, Hyundia or Chevy Aveo. $16,000 for the coupe and $19,000 for the convertible? Are they joking? I was thinking more around the lines of $9,000 to $12,000 top. I could get a Toyota Corolla for less and this is a larger, better, also economical car and safer car. Besides the Corolla, there is the Nissan Sentra, Mazda3, Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra, Chevy Cobalt, Honda Civic, that sells for the same price or even less. I believe Mercedes Benz lost touch with reality. Just because it gets good mileage, it does not means to jack up the price. The Smart is not a very smart car, just a overprice golf car. It is a golf car with a pretty body and a little more power, but also the slowest car in the US.

As our resident owner will tell you, it's simply designed to be the best car available for this size. If you believe that it's a plus that the Corolla is bigger, than you don't understand what the Smart is all about.

Yeah, Smart car is a city car, made for areas that do not have a lot of parking. If parking is not a problem, then a corolla will suit your needs just fine. I would still like to have one, not really sure what I would do with it or where I would drive it, but I do want one.
...It is not advisable, James, to venture unsolicited opinions. You should spare yourself the embarrassing discovery of their exact value to your listener. - Atlas Shrugged

Yeah, the smart doesn't make a lot of sense to me either. However, I see the point in big congested cities, it's nice to have something small to run around town in. And I think it's intended to make a statement, kind of like the mini. But it's just not the kind of statement many Americans are willing to make. It doesn't sound like a good choice for your daughter though. Get something safer, or if it was me I'd buy something used (and very cheap). Better yet, make her work and pay for part (if not all) of it. It'll make her appreciate it more, trust me.

It's the performance/mileage equation for me where the Smart falls short. It's dog-slow, and economically, it's not all that much better than the best conventional compacts out there, and not nearly as good as the Prius.

If it had more power and/or better mileage, and its transmission didn't suck as badly as it did (almost every single review I've read brings this up) I'd be more tempted. As it is now, it's a somewhat expensive, underpowered car that gets OK mileage, but at least it's easy to park.